Drug and alcohol addiction recovery centers will have to be certified before running an ad campaign and can no longer use lead generators.

Bing announced on Wednesday it is requiring drug and alcohol addiction recovery spaces to be certified by LegitScript before they can run ad campaigns on the site. The new policy will begin in the U.S. mid-March.

Why you should care

If you manage advertising for a drug and alcohol addiction recovery center in the U.S. currently running campaigns on Bing (or plans to do so in the future), you will need to make sure the facility is certified by LegitScript, a compliance and certification service for addiction treatment centers.

In addition to requiring the LegitScript certification, Bing is also disallowing lead generators for drug and alcohol addiction recovery services.

Bing said it is always evaluating its policies to ensure a “safe and engaging” experience for users, and that this latest policy update is aimed at creating a safer space for those suffering through addiction. “Drug and alcohol addiction are serious and sensitive topics, especially for those affected by the addiction either directly, or indirectly. Our users deserve the most helpful results we can offer when they are searching for addiction recovery assistance for themselves or a loved one,” wrote Bing on the Bing Ads blog.

Addiction recovery ads on Bing

More on the news

Bing said it will update its “Pharmacy and health care products and services policy” page to reflect the new certification rules, but did not give an exact date beyond mid-March.

LegitScript certification costs include an application fee along with an annual fee that runs anywhere between $1,495 and $1,995 depending on the number of centers an addiction treatment company may have, according to LegitScript’s website.

Bing’s decision to require LegitScript certification for addiction recovery advertisers comes nearly a year after Google made the same decision when it partnered with LegitScript to certify any addiction center advertisers.

About The Author

Amy Gesenhues is Third Door Media's General Assignment Reporter, covering the latest news and updates for Search Engine Land and Marketing Land. From 2009 to 2012, she was an award-winning syndicated columnist for a number of daily newspapers from New York to Texas. With more than ten years of marketing management experience, she has contributed to a variety of traditional and online publications, including MarketingProfs.com, SoftwareCEO.com, and Sales and Marketing Management Magazine. Read more of Amy's articles.